


The Dark Side of the Family

by Sung_gi



Series: The Darkness [2]
Category: SHINee, Super Junior
Genre: Action, M/M, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-09
Updated: 2014-03-09
Packaged: 2018-01-15 04:51:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,478
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1292068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sung_gi/pseuds/Sung_gi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As if losing his eyesight wasn’t enough. A year after he lost his eyesight he hears something shocking about his family. The man he had always called father wasn’t his biological father. And his biological father turns out to be a high-class criminal, who threatens the lives of his son and his husband.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Dark Side of the Family

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: graphic violence... don't like it, don't read it...
> 
> And there may be kinda a lot of typos and stuff... I was too tired to read it all through... Sorry about that :b I'll do it someday later...!!
> 
> But other than that, enjoy reading it!!^^

Life wasn’t easy after losing his eyesight. It took him way too long to recover, to learn how to continue living his life. He had to learn a new way of reading, a new way of moving around, a new way of communicating with other people. He had to also learn how to listen to Bada, his new best friend. And most importantly, he had to learn to cope with his condition – which was the hardest part. He would’ve probably ended up losing himself if he didn’t have Hyukjae by his side.

After almost a year of hard work Donghae had been able to return back to work. At first Hangeng had wanted to put him on early retirement – a really early retirement, if I may say – but eventually he had given up and let Donghae continue in the Unit. He wasn’t doing anything on the field, of course. He had been moved to interrogation group where he was paired up with Kibum and Leeteuk. 

There was also a new person working with him – Jodie. She was Donghae’s newest and the most important work-buddy now. The gorgeous German shepherd never left his side, always walking beside him, guiding him around the station. She had been introduced to him on his first day of work when he had walked in with Hyukjae. Of course Bada had to stay home. She also needed her time to rest and play around. When Donghae was at work she was off duty and when he returned home her workday begun. 

Donghae couldn’t say he didn’t miss the time when he still had his eyesight. He missed seeing, he really did. 

Right now he was sitting on the couch, listening to the radio. Bada was lying on the couch right next to him with her head resting on his lap. He was silently petting her soft fur, enjoying the feeling of it under his fingers. He maybe didn’t see her, but he was absolutely certain she was the most beautiful Golden retriever there had ever been or will ever be on Earth. 

“Yes… Yes, I’ll tell him. Thank you for calling… Yes, absolutely… Alright. Thank you for calling again… Bye.” Hyukjae ended the phone conversation he had had in the kitchen. Donghae could hear him walking to the living room and turned his head towards the silent steps of his husband’s. 

“Who was it?” He asked when he felt the couch dip next to him as Hyukjae sat down. 

“It was Hangeng. He wants to meet you tomorrow, the first thing in the morning. His exact words.” Hyukjae said. Donghae smiled at the slight annoyance he heard in Hyukjae’s voice. He knew how much the latter hated having to discuss about work during their free time. 

“Did he say why?” 

Hyukjae said nothing. 

Donghae stopped moving his hand, letting it rest on Bada’s neck and turned his head fully towards Hyukjae. “You know how much I hate not being able to see your face. Tell me, what is it?”

Hyukjae sighed and muttered a silent apology. “He didn’t say much.” 

“You’re not telling me everything. Hyukjae, spill it out.” 

Donghae was getting impatient. Hyukjae was keeping something from him, something that most likely bothered him. And Donghae couldn’t stand being kept in the darkness. When it seemed like Hyukjae wasn’t going to say anything, Donghae let out a frustrated sigh and turned his head away from him.

“Whatever… I’ll know it tomorrow.” He groaned and patted Bada’s head, telling her to move so he could stand up. Soon he was on his feet, taking his stick with him and following Bada. He was just about to enter the bedroom when Hyukjae opened his mouth.

“Wait…” He said quietly, knowing Donghae would still hear him. He stopped with Bada at his feet and turned to the direction of the living room. 

“I’m tired Hyukjae. I’ll go to bed.” Again he received no answer. Gosh, Hyukjae just knew how to piss him off. And he didn’t even know the reason behind his husband’s actions. With his eyebrows knitted together he turned around again and entered the bedroom. Once he felt his stick hit the leg of the bed, he sat down on it and asked Bada to come closer. He took off her tack. 

“Thank you, Bada.” He said with a smile and ruffled her fur. She was happily waving her tail and gave Donghae’s hand a small lick before she left the room. After hearing the sound of her nails slightly scraping the floor recede he stood up, removed his clothes until he was glad in his boxers and pulled off the cover of their bed.

He had just pulled the blanket over his body and placed his black glasses on the bedside table when he heard Hyukjae enter the room. Without saying a word the other got rid of his clothes and climbed on the bed. Neither of them dared to break the silence of the room – Donghae was too annoyed to do it and Hyukjae just didn’t find the right words. 

“Good night, Hyuk.” Donghae finally said and turned his back to his husband. He was annoyed, yes, but never had they gone to sleep without wishing good night to the other. And even though he was angry, he meant every single word.

“There’s something I haven’t told you about.” Hyukjae spoke softly. His words got Donghae’s full attention. With his eyes closed he turned to lie on his back.

“What is it Hyuk?” He asked. The silence was slightly awkward, something that rarely filled their apartment. And it made Donghae lose his patience. “Hyukjae?” He pushed the other.

“When you were still in the hospital, the doctor spoke with your parents. I overheard them and later on the doctor came to tell me the same he told them…” Hyukjae said. He sounded worried.

Donghae held his breathe, unsure of how to react. He wanted Hyukjae to continue but the tone of his voice told Donghae enough not to push him anymore. Instead, Donghae turned to lie on his side, this time facing Hyukjae. He reached his hand to where he expected Hyukjae’s head to be but was surprised to find his fingers touching Hyukjae’s chest and not his hair.

“I don’t really know how to tell you this…” Hyukjae admitted. 

“Just say it. It can’t be something that bad.” Donghae encouraged him, trying to put on a smile. It was difficult though, as Hyukjae’s voice was practically screaming of something unpleasant.

“It’s…” Hyukjae hesitated. “It’s about your father.”

Donghae was utterly surprised. “My father?” He asked and pushed himself up on his elbow, opening his eyes and focusing his eyes on the spot where he knew Hyukjae’s face would be. 

“Yes… or actually, your… I mean…” Hyukjae was lost with words. “The thing is that… he… He’s not your biological father.” 

“WHAT?” Donghae exclaimed and abruptly sat up, facing Hyukjae. He heard Bada run into the room after hearing her owner yelling. She jumped on the bed and nuzzled her nose on Donghae’s shoulder, making sure he was alright. “It’s alright, Bada.” Donghae murmured absent mindedly.

He then turned back to Hyukjae. “And how do you know this?”

“I told you… The doctor…” Hyukjae said. “I’m sorry, Donghae. Sorry I didn’t tell you. But I knew you were going through hard time and I didn’t want to –“ 

He was cut off by Donghae, who was boiling in anger. “You knew about this? For over a year you knew about this and never told me anything?” 

“I’m sorry!” Hyukjae cried out. Donghae was mad in anger. If he still had his eye sight, he would be seeing red right now. “You were going through rough time and I just–“

“I don’t care if I was going through rough time! You kept that from me!” 

“Please, Hae…” Hyukjae whispered and Donghae knew the other’s eyes were filled with tears. He could hear the sorrow in his voice. But it eased his anger only a little.

“How did they know about it? What’s the proof?” 

“You needed a lot of blood… And because of your mother’s medication she couldn’t donate… And when checking your father’s blood group they realized it was practically impossible for them to have you. And then they ran a DNA test…” 

“And what does all this have to do with Hangeng? Why does he want to see me tomorrow?”

“He didn’t tell me exactly. He just told me to finally tell you about your…father.”

“I can’t believe this!” Donghae yelled and threw his hands in the air, startling Bada in the process. “You’ve both known about this and neither of you ever told me anything!”

“We did it for you, Donghae!” Hyukjae raised his voice, only slightly, but it was enough for Donghae to notice. But he didn’t really know what to say anymore. Anger was clouding his mind and thinking straight was absolutely out of question. He finally decided to stay silent and lied back down, turning his back to Hyukjae.

“Night.” He growled, still shaking in anger. He heard Hyukjae sigh before also lying down and pulling the blanket closer to his body.

“I love you.” Hyukjae whispered and kissed the back of Donghae’s naked shoulder. “Good night.”

 

The morning was just as bad as the previous night. Donghae hadn’t been able to fall asleep as his anger was keeping him awake. All kinds of questions and accusations were running wild in his mind all night. And yet he had been unable to let anything out. He had listened to Hyukjae’s slow and steady breathing, waiting for him to fall asleep before getting up and walking to the living room, where he had sat on the couch long enough for him to fall asleep. Later he had woken up with a sore neck and shuffled back to bed.

The breakfast had been extremely awkward and silent, as well as the drive to work. Donghae was still angry at Hyukjae but the silence between them wasn’t really because of that. It was simply because neither of them knew what to say. 

“Have a good day…” Hyukjae spoke softly when the car finally stopped. Donghae was about to get out of the car, not saying anything. He already had his hand on the handle when Hyukjae reached for him and placed his hand on his shoulder. “Won’t you even give me a kiss?”

The kiss he always gave him before going.

Letting out a small sigh, Donghae turned to Hyukjae and leaned in for him. Hyukjae automatically leaned closer to him and captured his lips with his own. The kiss was soft, gentle and didn’t take long.

“See you later.” Donghae mumbled as he pulled back and opened the door.

“I love you!” Hyukjae told him when he was already standing outside. A small smile tugged on Donghae’s lips as he heard those simple words.

“Love you too.” He said before closing the door.

“Jeez, will you ever stop being that cheesy?” Donghae heard Siwon’s mocking voice behind him. 

With a small laugh, he turned to his friend. “You’d know if you dated someone.” 

“Oh yeah? I think I’ll rather be single until I can afford a small island in the middle of the ocean where I don’t need to worry about her safety…”

“Have you ever thought about pirates then?” Donghae grinned. “You know, those who take the money and the women of the rich men?”

“Will you stop it!” Siwon grimaced but chuckled at the other. “C’mon, Jodie is waiting for you inside.”

Donghae made a face. “You mean I should actually walk up the stairs without her?” 

“That’s exactly what I mean.” Siwon laughed and took Donghae’s arm. “Shall we?”

Donghae rolled his eyes although he knew Siwon couldn’t see it behind the black glasses he was wearing. Steadily they made their way up the stairs to the front door of the station. The moment they stepped in, Donghae heard a familiar bark from the other side of the lobby and soon he felt his partner jump against him. He laughed and ruffled Jodie’s fur before taking a hold of the handle of her tack. 

He let Jodie lead him to the elevator and when they reached the right floor he let her take him to his desk. He only let go of her when he found the chair in front of his desk and sat down. A routine he had taken up. 

“Donghae-ah, Hangeng wants to see you.”

Donghae groaned. He had just sat down and only now did Leeteuk come to him. Seriously? 

“You just didn’t bother telling me when I was actually near his office?” He spat at the older, half joking, half serious. 

“Nope. You should walk around much more than what you do now.”

“So you’re all part of some twisted plan, huh? First Siwon doesn’t bring Jodie out and forces me to walk up the stairs without her. And now you want me to walk all the way from here–“ He pointed at the spot where his desk was situated. “–to there?” And then he moved his hand to the direction of Hangeng’s office. 

“And don’t forget the stairs.” Donghae heard Kibum’s voice. The boy had taken up a bad habit of teasing the older, never failing to make Donghae smile. Only a year back, Kibum had been quiet and shy, but now he didn’t really hesitate to speak with the other members of the Unit. Naturally he was much more confident with Donghae and Leeteuk but everyone knew how much the magnae had matured.

“Yah! Did you really have to remind me?” Donghae yelled at Kibum but smiled widely. “Come on, Jodie. Hangeng wants to see me.” In a blink of an eye the dog was standing next to him, offering the handle and waiting for him to let her lead his way. Donghae had never stopped amiring Jodie’s ability to learn names and remember everything. After the first week she had already been able to recognize the names of each member of the Unit. And she had always known who Hangeng was and where to take Donghae when he needed to see him.

“And I’ll take that one…” Leeteuk said mischievously just when Donghae was about to reach for his stick. The younger whined loudly, letting everyone know his protest, but Leeteuk simply shrugged it off. “You won’t hit your feet anywhere. She’ll guide you.”

“I hate you.” Donghae whined but gave up. He knew the stairs would be difficult to walk up without the stick but he managed to get to the second floor easier than he had expected. Once he had struggled up the stairs, he heard his team mates cheer for him, mocking yet encouraging him. 

“Piss off!” Donghae yelled at them but grinned. There were days when he just absolutely hated them and there were days when he loved them almost as much as he loved Hyukjae. His team mates were like brothers to him.

“Where did you learn that kinda language, young man?” Donghae’s laugh was cut short by Hangeng’s rather harsh tone of voice. The others also quieted down and continued working without a word. 

“Sorry…” Donghae muttered and lowered his head. He could feel Hangeng’s eyes on him as he kept the door open for Donghae and Jodie. The dog walked Donghae to the chair in front of Hangeng’s desk and lied down on the floor as Donghae sat down. 

“I’ll go straight to the point. Did Hyukjae tell you about your father?”

Donghae gritted his teeth. “He did.”

“So you know he’s not your biological father?” Hangeng asked to make sure Donghae really knew it. The younger nodded. 

“What’s it got to do with anything?” Donghae asked, still gritting his teeth together. He didn’t like the feeling of where this conversation would be going.

“I wouldn’t have pushed Hyukjae to tell you about it at all, if your biological father hadn’t suddenly appeared.” Hangeng paused to wait for Donghae’s reaction. But when he received nothing, he decided to continue. “He’s been taken into custody. It happened yesterday. And he appears to have connections to a Chinese mafia.”

“And?”

“And the higher-ups wanted you to question him. With Kibum.”

“But you won’t let me, huh?” 

“Would you want to do it?” Hangeng asked. Donghae’s attitude was clearly annoying him, but Donghae didn’t really care. He was angry. Somewhere deep inside his mind he hoped he had never heard the fact that his father wasn’t his biological one. But on the other hand, he was angry the truth had been kept away from him. He was angry at his mother, at his father, at his real-father, at Hyukjae and at Hangeng. He wasn’t sure if he should be angry at other people too – how many of his friends knew about this and still never told him?

Donghae didn’t know what to answer. “I’m not sure.”

“I’d rather have you two interrogating the two other men that were caught along with him.” Hangeng said. “But I let you choose.”

Donghae was contemplating the opinions in his head. Was he really ready to face his biological father after just hearing about him? And even more now that he was suspected to have something to do with a Chinese mafia…! Was his biological father really a criminal? Did he know about him, his son? And what if he did know about him? Would he recognize Donghae? 

“I’ll take the two others. Let Leeteuk and Shindong handle…that man.” 

“Alright. I’ll have them in the room two in half an hour.” Hangeng said. He sounded pleased by Donghae’s choice. But Donghae understood him. It would ruin the whole interrogation if the man recognized him as his son. And it would probably ruin Donghae’s day completely.

Jodie led Donghae back down the stairs and to his desk, where he sat down and rested his head on his hands while leaning on the table. He took off his glasses in order to rub his eyes, tired already and the day had just started.

“So you don’t want to meet him?” Kibum asked. Donghae jumped at hearing his voice so close – he was probably leaning on the desk. He hadn’t heard the young man coming to him.

“You too? And you never told me!?” 

“Leeteuk told me this morning.” Kibum said calmly. Donghae groaned and raked his fingers through his hair before grabbing the glasses from the table and putting them on again. 

“I need to make a phone call. What time is it now?” Donghae told his partner. 

“Eight twenty-one. I’ll give you 15 minutes.” Kibum said before walking away. Donghae didn’t waste a second as he stood up, immediately finding Jodie by his side and asking her to lead him to the toilets. Once in the toilet, he locked himself in and fished his phone out of his pocket.

He easily unlocked the phone and speed dialed the person’s number. It didn’t take too long for her to pick up.

“Why you never told me?!” He yelled the moment she answered his call. “You never told me my father isn’t my real, biological father!” 

_“Donghae-ah, what is this?”_

“Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about!” Donghae snarled. “Hyukjae told me. Suddenly I have two dads instead of one. Isn’t that just great?!” He didn’t care if he acted like a total douche bag towards his mother. He let his anger flow out.

 _“Donghae…”_ His mother sighed in the other line. _“We shouldn’t talk about that like this.”_

“And how should we talk about this then?”

_“I’m coming to Seoul next week… Let’s talk about this over a lunch, shall we?”_

Donghae inhaled deeply before releasing the air. The sadness in his mother’s voice had forced his anger to subside and let him think clearly again. “Alright. Just… answer to one question.”

_“What is it, Donghae-ah?”_

“Why didn’t you tell me? Why did you hide it from me?” He cursed for his shaky voice. He hated it when the anger turned into tear. And yet he couldn’t help it.

_“Donghae… He’s… He’s not a good person.” His mother answered slowly. “He has done things I don’t want you to know.”_

“Mom, he’s here for interrogations. Is there something I really should know?”

 _“You’re not interrogating him, are you?”_ She suddenly exclaimed, sounding more worried and shocked than before. _“Donghae, answer me!”_ She demanded when Donghae didn’t give her an immediate answer.

Donghae leaned his back on the wall, slowly letting himself slide down until he was sitting on the floor of the toilet. Jodie walked closer to him, touching his chest with her nose. Donghae rested his hand on her fur, silently telling her not to worry. After a few seconds she relaxed enough to sit down next to him.

“Mom, is there something I should know?”

_“Sweetie, he’s a bad man. He has done many bad things…”_

“He did something to you, didn’t he?”

For a while she was completely silent. Donghae was just about to ask her if she was still there when she finally spoke. _“This is not the right way to tell you. Let’s talk about it when we meet, face to face.”_

Donghae sighed audibly. The tone of her voice told him she was not going to tell him anything anymore. It was pointless to try and push her to speak about the matter. 

“Alright. Call me when you know when you’re coming.”

_“I will. Take care of yourself and Hyukjae. I love you.”_

“I love you too, mom.” Donghae said before hanging up. Frustrated beyond the limit, he let his head rest on the wall behind him, trying to calm his mind. That man had definitely done something to his mother, something bad. He was now certain about it. 

Suddenly the idea of interrogating the man by himself sounded rather appealing. Maybe he could get more information. He was furious and yet the curiosity inside him was making his thoughts one big mess. 

“Donghae?” Kibum’s voice sounded from behind the door. “15 minute’s up. Let’s go.” 

“Just a sec…” Donghae muttered and got up on his feet. Jodie pushed his leg with her head when he didn’t immediately wrap his fingers around the handle she was carrying. With a small smile he took a hold of it and walked to the door.

Kibum was waiting for him right behind it. Jodie paid him no mind but followed the young agent to the corridor where the interrogation rooms were located. Donghae knew his and Kibum’s targets were in the second room, but the temptation to enter the first one was growing with every step he took along the corridor.

Slowly he sneaked his hand a little to the left, feeling the wall right under his fingers. Kibum was walking before him and Jodie was on his right, neither of them paid enough attention on him. And when he felt the door of the first interrogation room, he slowed his phase. He knew the next door would lead to the room where there was one-way-see-through window and he could perfectly hear the conversation without Leeteuk or Shindong knowing anything.

The moment his fingers touched the second door, he quickly found the handle and pushed the door open. Kibum let out a surprised gasp and Jodie winced at the sudden loss of her partner as Donghae let go of her and entered the room alone.

“Donghae, what are you–“ He heard Kibum asking him loudly before he shut the door right before his eyes. He fumbled with the lock of the door and managed to lock it from the inside. And then he froze.

 _“You didn’t let him do this?”_ An unknown male voice spoke in the interrogation room. Shivers went down on Donghae’s back. He knew the voice belonged to the man… his biological father. It just couldn’t be anyone else.

 _“Who do you mean?”_ It was Leeteuk’s calm voice. 

_“My bastard son, of course. I know he’s working here.”_ The tone of his voice was disgusting. But hearing his words got Donghae to sigh in small relief – at least he had done the right thing and hadn’t barged into the interrogation room. The man would’ve probably recognized him since he knew he worked there.

 _“Do you know why you’re here?”_ Shindong asked, sounding almost as calm as Leeteuk. They were a good pair, although Shindong wasn’t as good at covering his feelings as Leeteuk. At least not yet. 

_“I know nothing about the mafia you’re all the time talking about.”_

_“You’re here because you were found from the murder scene. Your friends are being questioned in the other rooms right now.”_ Leeteuk spoke. _“You know this man?” Donghae knew they were showing a picture to the man._

_“I’ve never seen him.”_

_“Funny…”_ Shindong muttered. _“That’s the man you and your buddies killed just about 31 hours ago.”_

 _“Why didn’t you let him question me?”_ The man asked suddenly, changing the topic back to Donghae, whose body tensed again. He had just relaxed enough to start breathing properly again. But now it was all gone again.

_“Why are you suddenly so interested in him?”_

_“I wonder if he even knows about me…”_

_“The man’s name is Yang Young Guk.”_ Leeteuk changed the topic back to the dead man. _“He’s the old rival of the Mafia.”_

 _“And what’s it got to do with me?”_ The man asked. Donghae felt like throwing up. The man really was disgusting! The tone of his voice was way too carefree, too easygoing… Like there was nothing concerning him…

_“You were found from the crime scene. You have a rather long criminal record and you’ve been interrogated many times. And in addition to that, you’ve been connected to the Chinese mafia multiple times.”_

_“And yet you have no other evidence against me.”_ The man said. _“So I’m practically free to leave, am I right?”_

_“No, you’re not. You’re being held in custody… for now.”_

_“And when may I see my beloved son?”_ Silence fell in the room. Donghae was clutching the handle of the door with such force. He was sure his knuckles had turned white by now. Why was this man so obsessed with him? 

_“Why do you want to see him that badly?”_ Leeteuk finally asked.

_“Is it wrong for a father to want to see his son?”_

Donghae couldn’t stand it anymore. He angrily unlocked the door and ripped it open. He rushed out of the room, only to be met by Jodie who immediately pushed her head on his leg, asking for him to notice her. When he gave her no attention at all, she let out a silent growl.

“Donghae–Donghae stop!” Kibum yelled when he realized Donghae wasn’t coming to the direction of the interrogation room where they were supposed to be. Instead, Donghae walked to the direction of the door that separated him from the man he had never seen but hated more than anyone else.

His fingers reached the handle of the correct door and he was just about to find the handle when Kibum violently ripped his hand away.

“Don’t.” The younger yelled at him. It worked. Donghae froze on his feet, shaking in anger. He was blinded by the fury – oh the irony – and couldn’t think straight. 

“What’s going on here?” He heard Hangeng’s voice from the other side of the corridor. A short break followed before Hangeng’s voice boomed in his ears. “Mister Lee, what do you think you’re doing?”

Donghae remained still with his mouth closed. He was busy biting the inside of his cheek in order to keep himself from screaming. Kibum released his hand from his tight hold but never moved away from him.

“Kibum, go get Siwon.” Hangeng’s voice was ice cold. Donghae knew he was in deep shit… “And you…” Hangeng said, obviously referring to Donghae. “You’re going home. I’ll call Hyukjae to pick you up.”

“But Hangeng–“ Donghae tried to oppose him. Without any kind of success.

“You’re going home. And you stay there for the rest of the day. Tomorrow you’ll go through the recording of the interrogation with the two you were supposed to question.”

There was no point of trying to argue now.

But just when Donghae was about to move away from the door, it was opened. 

The interrogation rooms were completely sound proofed, so of course neither Leeteuk nor Shindong knew about the situation right outside the door. And to Donghae’s utter horror, he was still standing right in front of the door, knowing the man he hated the most was standing right next to him in the doorway.

“What’s going on?” Leeteuk asked as soon as he saw Donghae and Hangeng. But he didn’t receive any answer when the man he was holding onto spoke with the creepiest tone of voice Donghae had ever heard anyone using.

“What a coincidence! I was wondering when I’d get to meet you.”

“How dare you talk to me, huh?” Donghae snarled and slowly turned to the direction of the voice.

“Outch… what a disrespectful way to speak to your own father.”

“You fucking–“

“Donghae!” Hangeng yelled at him, efficiently shutting his mouth. “Leeteuk, take him away.”

Automatically Donghae took a step back, feeling Jodie standing right next to him. He took a hold of the handle of her tack. It seemed like she knew his thoughts as she begun to lead the way away from the man whose eyes were still locked on Donghae.

“A word before you go.” Hangeng spoke quietly when Donghae passed him. The blind man didn’t pay any kind of attention to him as he continued walking. 

“It was nice meeting you, _son_.” The man yelled after him. Donghae clenched his fingers into fists as he continued walking. He was having an inner battle with himself. One part of him wanted to spin around and yell the man something he would most likely regret later, whereas the other part wanted to get away from him as fast as possible.

The latter option won and he increased the phase of his feet.

 

“What happened?” Hyukjae demanded, voice full of concern. “Donghae, this is the second time I have to get you from work in the middle of the day in a week. What’s going on?”

“You know I can’t tell you…” Donghae muttered. He knew how frustrating and painful it was for Hyukjae, but he just couldn’t say a word about what happened at work. 

“Aish…!” Hyukjae hissed and hit the gas. 

Wanting to change the topic, Donghae decided to tell Hyukjae about his mother coming to Seoul in the following week.

“Oh… And she’s staying at us?”

“Of course. I didn’t ask her, though. But I assume so. I don’t know how long she’ll be staying either.”

“But it’s nice to see her again. It’s been a while since the last time we met.” Hyukjae said with a smile. They stopped in the red lights and Donghae felt Bada sniff his hair from the back seat. A small sigh slipped from his mouth and he wouldn’t have even noticed it himself if Hyukjae didn’t say anything. “You don’t seem all too happy about your mother coming here.”

“I am happy to see her… It’s just that…” He let the sentence hanging in the air as the car started moving again.

“Donghae-ah… Is this about your father?”

Donghae only nodded, not trusting his voice. A part of him was glad Hyukjae knew him that well, and Hyukjae knew not to speak about the topic. His husband only hummed, telling Donghae he was sorry for him and would give him his support. 

“I know it’s hard. And I’m truly sorry I didn’t tell you earlier.”

“I know, I know.” Donghae said and rested his head on the cold window. 

 

_“I’m sorry Donghae, but I can’t come. Something urgent happened at work and I have to take care of it. My meeting in Seoul has thus been moved.”_

“So when will you come then?” Donghae asked and took off his glasses in order to rub his eyes. Jodie was poking his calf with her nose, knowing Donghae was slightly distressed. But Donghae ignored her, waiting for his mother’s answer.

 _“The exact time of the meeting hasn’t been settled yet. But it should take place in a month. I can come over for a weekend, if you still want to talk about…”_ She didn’t finish her sentence, knowing fully well Donghae knew exactly what she was talking about. 

“No, it’s okay. Me and Hyukjae are going on a small vacation for the weekend.”

_“Ah, I see. Where’re you going?”_

“Just outside the town. There’s a small holiday resort in the West, near Chuncheon.”

 _“Sounds nice. Sorry, sweetie, but I must go now.”_ She said and with a smile in her voice. _“Love you.”_

“Love you too, mom.” He answered and ended the call. He had really hoped for her to come to Seoul. He would’ve wanted to discuss about his biological father and it had already been a week since he spoke with her. And she still refused to talk about the topic on the phone. She insisted to talk about it face to face. 

“Hyung, why are you still here?” Kibum asked. Donghae was slightly surprised to hear his voice as Kibum’s shift had ended a long time ago.

“I could ask you the same thing. Wasn’t your shift supposed to end already?”

“Yeah, it ended two hours ago… But you know, paper work.” 

Haha, paper work. The shittiest thing of police work. But as ironic as it was, Donghae actually missed it. Since the day he had returned work he had missed it. It was rather hard to do without eyesight. And now all the others had to do his paper work for him.

And he hated it. He would’ve done anything to be able to do it by himself.

“Anyway, what’re you still doing here?” Kibum asked, trying to ignore the frown on Donghae’s face. 

“What time is it?”

“Half past six.” Kibum answered simply. Weird, Hyukjae should’ve already called him. Half an hour ago, to be honest. 

“Hyukjae hasn’t called me yet. He’s probably just late.” Hyukjae worked in a restaurant as a waiter. It wasn’t unusual for him to stay late and do extra shifts especially if one of his work mates was sick. He was always glad to help and happily did a little extra. It also meant a little extra money, which was never a bad thing. 

“Oh, I see. Should I drive you home then?” Kibum offered. Donghae shrugged. He could just ask Kibum to send Hyukjae a message, telling he was at home already. 

“Sure, thanks.” 

“I’ll just get my coat and drive to the front. You’ll manage down the stairs with Jodie, right?” Donghae nodded, already standing up and pulling on his coat. Jodie let out a happy bark, enthusiastic to go out. She was a dog, and just like every dog she loved being outside!

“Alright Jodie, let’s go.” Donghae told her with a smile. Well, who could resist the happiness radiating from the dog? At least he couldn’t. And he was also happy to get out. He missed the time when he was still doing field work. He had never enjoyed being trapped in the office.

Together they walked to the elevator, Jodie pressed the button and once they were inside she pressed the button of the ground floor. After getting Jodie Donghae hadn’t been able to press the buttons himself. On the first day with her he had tried to do it but only received a rather painful nip from Jodie. She had made it very clear that she was the one pressing the buttons. And now Donghae couldn’t resist the smile that spread on his face every time Jodie did it. She was such a smart girl.

And Donghae never forgot to reward her with phrases and a small treat.

Once they stepped out of the elevator and walked through the lobby, Jodie was becoming more and more restless. She was increasing their phase with every step they took towards the doors separating them from the fresh air. Donghae laughed at her and pushed the door open once Jodie stopped. 

She didn’t waste a single second before pulling Donghae out with her.

“Okay, okay. We’re out. Calm down girl.” Donghae laughed at her, trying to calm her down a little. But he was also glad to be out. The air wasn’t as fresh as he’d like it to be – well, what can you expect in a big city like Seoul? – but it was much, much better than the air inside the office. 

They walked down the stairs. Jodie managed to calm down enough to remember her duty and not to pull Donghae over, letting him take his time. Once on the sidewalk thought, she tugged a little to the side. Donghae knew she’d like to sniff around and take in all the new smells of the day. 

“Jodie, where’s Kibum?” Donghae asked, knowing his partner should be there soon with his car. When his dog didn’t react to Kibum’s name in any way, Donghae deduced he wasn’t there yet. And so he let Jodie pull him to the side and gladly walked around with her taking in all the smells of the surroundings.

Donghae decided it was a good time for him to call Hyukjae and tell him Kibum would drive him home while waiting for Jodie to shift her attention back to him. He had just gotten his phone into his hand when someone suddenly bumped onto him from behind. 

“Oh, I’m sorry.” He automatically apologized the person and turned around. But before he could react to anything, a soft cloth was pressed over his mouth and nose.

Panicked, Donghae tried not to breathe. He knew if he breathed he would pass out. Chloroform, he was sure of it. He could hear Jodie barking loudly but suddenly she let out a whine, obviously in pain. 

What was going on?! He tried to struggle but the person had a firm hold of him. He couldn’t do much. 

The pain in his lungs was starting to affect him as well as the terror clouding his mind. 

And then he inhaled through the cloth. 

Everything was starting to blur immediately as he drew air into his burning lungs. And then he lost consciousness.

 

Slowly the fogginess of his mind was starting to fade. He didn’t know where he was, why he was there and what the hell had happened. He remembered taking Jodie out while waiting for Kibum. And he remembered someone attacking him. But why? What was the reason behind all this?

“Hae?” He heard a hoarse whisper. 

Wait…!

“Hyuk? Hyukjae?!” He yelled. 

“Donghae…” Hyukjae’s whisper was thick with tears.

Hyukjae was really there. Why was he there? Was he alright? Was he hurt? 

“Hyuk, where are you?” Donghae asked, tears filling his eyes. He cursed for not being able to see. And he was barely able to move. He realized he was in a sitting position, probably on the floor while leaning on the wall behind him. He wasn’t tied up but his body was sore.

“I’m…” Hyukjae said and let out a small sob. He was obviously right in front of Donghae, a few meters away. “I’m right here…” 

“Oh god, Hyukjae…!” Hearing Hyukjae’s voice was just painful. And knowing the situation definitely was not good it only made his heart beat faster. Without thinking straight Donghae forced his body to move and he crawled to the direction of Hyukjae’s voice. Feeling the floor below his hands he was able to find his husbands feet.

“Donghae–“ Hyukjae gasped and Donghae knew he tried to move. He felt the chair Hyukjae was sitting on move slightly. With his hands he was able to find Hyukjae’s feet tied to the chair with cable ties that were cutting into his skin through the fabric of his pants.

He moved his hands higher up, feeling Hyukjae’s body under his fingers. He rounded his hands to the back, only to confirm himself that Hyukjae’s hands were also tied up.

He couldn’t utter a word. Why Hyukjae? He didn’t really care about himself, but this was too much. This was the second time Hyukjae had been taken like this in a year or so. 

“I see you’re finally awake.”

Donghae’s whole body tensed at hearing the voice. He knew immediately to whom it belonged to.

“What do you want?” He snarled, not turning his head. Instead he pressed himself even closer to Hyukjae, whose body was just as tense as his. The man behind him laughed silently. 

“I wanted to spend time with my son, of course.”

That had Donghae spinning around. He was furious. “Alright. Then let him go.” He yelled, emphasizing his words by pointing at Hyukjae. 

“But that would just ruin everything, now wouldn’t it?”

“What do you want from him?”

“Nothing, in the matter of fact.”

“Then why did you take him?”

“You see, Donghae, me and my men have been observing you for the past month. And you were always with someone. You were never alone. And so, taking your husband was the only way of getting you alone.”

“Well, now you have me. Let him go.”

“No, Donghae. We both know that’s not going to happen.” Donghae gritted his teeth. That was exactly what he was afraid of. They hadn’t covered Hyukjae’s face so he knew who the people were. There was no chance they’d let him walk away.

“So, I heard you lost your eyesight a year ago.” The man said suddenly. The tone of his voice had made a 180° turn, sounding relaxed and at ease – like he was having a chat about the weather outside with his old friend. 

Donghae didn’t answer, but stood up on his feet. He never let go of Hyukjae, all the time keeping his hand on his shoulder. Hyukjae was shaking in fear. And Donghae had to admit he wasn’t doing any better himself, although he managed to keep the fear from showing off on his face. But he didn’t even try to cover the boiling anger inside him.

 

Kibum cursed as he finally managed to pull his car on the side of the road right in front of the station. It had taken him longer than necessary to get his car out of the parking hall as two idiots had started a fight right in front of the exit. He had been forced to stop and break the two men away from each other. Fortunately it was enough for him to show off his badge, tell them to walk in different ways and the men had done exactly as he had told.

But now that he was in the front, he didn’t see Donghae or Jodie anywhere. They had been supposed to wait for him right there in front of the stairs. 

Kibum turned the keys and shut off the engine of the car before stepping out of the car. Jodie had probably pulled Donghae a little further as she had always been eager to go out. 

But Kibum didn’t see them anywhere near. He closed the door of the car, locked the doors and took a few steps closer to the building before him. Were they still inside? Maybe Donghae had gotten stuck up in a conversation with other police men.

He took out his phone, quickly dialed Donghae’s number and hit call. While waiting for the other to pick up, he walked closer to the stairs leading to the front doors of the station. But then he heard it, Donghae’s ring tone. The song that had been played in his and Hyukjae’s weddings half a year ago. And the sound was getting closer to him all the time. 

He turned around with round eyes. He was completely stunned to see Jodie running to him with Donghae’s phone in her mouth. 

 

“Hyuk… I need you to tell me everything you know. How long have we been here? How and when did they take you? Do you know where we are? Have they done something to you?” Donghae asked and rested his head on Hyukjae’s lap. He hadn’t been able to free Hyukjae from his ties although he had tried to the point where his own hands were bleeding. 

“I… I don’t know. They came when I was leaving work and coming to pick you up. I was opening the doors of the car when they attacked me. They put something over my mouth and then I blacked out.” 

“And then?”

“I was here when I woke up. And you weren't here yet. I don’t know how or when they carried you here but when they did you… you were out quite a long time.”

Donghae sighed. “Do you still have your phone with you?” He knew the answer already. Of course they had taken his phone away. They weren’t that stupid.

“It’s still in my pocket…” Hyukjae whispered barely audibly. Donghae sat up abruptly. 

“ _What?_ ” His hands were already working on, trying to find the pocket of Hyukjae’s jeans where his phone was. He found it and for the first time he cursed Hyukjae for wearing such tight jeans. “Hyuk, I know the ties hurt but I need you to move a little. I cannot get the phone out and I cannot break your jeans either. They’ll notice it if I do.” 

He waited for a moment for Hyukjae to shift on the chair. He pushed himself closer to the edge of the chair, groaning in pain as the ties cut deeper into his skin. 

“Got it.” Donghae whispered. 

“Turn off the volume.” Hyukjae muttered. Donghae nodded and fumbled with the phone for a while but finally, with Hyukjae’s guidance, he managed to turn off the sounds. “Why are you taking it?”

“They know I’m defenseless without eyesight and I probably dropped my phone when they took me. So they won’t suspect me. But you on the other hand… even though you can’t move…”He let his voice fade as he pushed the phone into the pocket of his own pants. He was wearing looser jeans and a longish shirt that would cover most of the bump in his pocket. At least that’s what he hoped.

He then relaxed again and rested his head on Hyukjae’s lap as the other one sat up again. 

“Did they hurt you?” Donghae asked, trying to will his voice to be steady. Hyukjae didn’t answer. “Hyuk, did they hurt you?”

“What does it matter?” Hyukjae’s voice was strangled. Donghae sat up and turned his head towards his husband. 

“What did they do?” 

“Donghae… I… They…” Hyukjae was crying again. “My finger…”

Donghae’s heart skipped a beat. “Your finger?” He didn’t really want to hear what Hyukjae was about to say next. Without thinking he reached for Hyukjae’s hands that were ties to the chair behind his back. 

“The left hand…” Hyukjae muttered, sobbing. Donghae was acting before he even knew it himself. His hands reached for Hyukjae’s left hand, the other cried out in pain and then he realized it… 

Hyukjae’s ring finger…was missing.

“Hae, it hurts!” Hyukjae screamed. Immediately Donghae pulled his hand away. His fingers were slick and wet… he knew they were also red now. His stomach clenched, he wanted to throw up but his stomach was empty.

“They… they said they couldn’t stand gay people.” Hyukjae whispered while trying to get over the pain. “They threw my ring away… I don’t know where it is.” 

That was it. Donghae lost his compose completely. Tears flowed down on his cheeks and he didn’t even try to keep it quiet. He screamed in agony, cursing every person he could. He wasn’t even surprised to hear rushing footsteps coming to his way. 

Arms wrapped around him, violently pulling him onto his feet. But he wasn’t going to let these men have their way with him. He trashed, used all his power and did everything in his might to get loose. 

Hyukjae’s cries mixed with Donghae’s screams and the shouts of the other men. But everything stopped when a loud bang of a gun echoed in the room. 

Donghae stilled, stopping everything. Hyukjae had fallen silent due to the gunfire. 

Had he…?

“Hyukjae?” Donghae whispered quietly, tears all the time soaking his face. 

“Hae, I’m ok.” Hyukjae muttered. But it was enough to calm Donghae’s poor heart. For a moment he had feared for the worst. 

“And here I thought you’d know how to behave.” Donghae growled angrily at the man. His voice came from the other side of the room and Donghae tried to move his head in his direction. “Look what you’ve done… Now I have a bullet on the floor.” The man continued. Donghae bit his tongue. “Oh… I forgot you cannot see anything.” The man laughed.

Cold sweat was running down on Donghae’s back as he listened to the man. He had begun to walk forwards, towards him, and didn’t stop before he was just a few inches away from Donghae. He could feel the man’s breathe on his face. And the smell of cigars and alcohol were intoxicating. 

“It’s okay, you can release him.” The man said and a moment later Donghae found himself free from the men who had been holding him. “There isn’t much he could do anyway.”

“You sound all too confident.” Donghae growled silently. The man laughed again.

“You’re blind, Donghae-ah.” The man said, pushing his head even closer to Donghae’s. Donghae was glad he was still wearing his black glasses. Otherwise he would’ve closed his eyes and the man would’ve taken it as a proof of his weakness. But now the man couldn’t see him and thus they were almost equals. Almost.

“And you wouldn’t do anything that would hurt your husband, now would you?” the man said and took a step backwards – towards Hyukjae.

“Get away from him!” Donghae screamed and clenched his hands into fists. His finger nails were painfully digging into his palms but he didn’t even notice it. 

“Or what?” The man laughed again. “Anyway, I’m not going to kill either of you yet. I never wanted to hurt you, Donghae.”

Donghae remained silent but Hyukjae let out a silent whimper. Donghae hated the fact that he didn’t know exactly what the man was doing but he knew he was close to Hyukjae. 

“Get away from him.” Donghae surprised even himself with the tone of his voice. His voice wasn’t shaking anymore. He didn’t scream. He didn’t growl. His voice sounded calm. Neutral. Everything that he definitely was not on the inside. 

“Very well.” The man said. For a short moment a deep silence filled the room. The atmosphere had Donghae’s skin go on goose bumps. The man was planning something. 

And then a pair of hands grabbed Donghae’s wrists, twisting them behind his back. He was forced to kneel down on the floor against his will. He heard Hyukjae scream his name once again before a sharp pain exploded on his stomach. 

He groaned in pain. It felt like his insides were on fire. The man chuckled and grouched down on the level of Donghae’s face. He then removed his glasses.

While still trying to recover from the pain and calm his breathe Donghae couldn’t help but spit as the man removed his glasses. He knew his eyes were still moving if he wanted to move them and he could hear the man’s breathing. And he knew his spit landed right on the man’s face.

Since the man wasn’t going to kill them yet, he didn’t even care if he angered the man even further. The man still had a reason to keep them alive – otherwise they would both be dead already.

And he wasn’t really surprised when he felt a fist land on his cheek. The force of the assault turned Donghae’s head to the side. He closed his eyes, trying to bear the pain. Wasn’t it enough to have hands painfully twisted behind his back and aching stomach after a hard kick? Apparently no.

“You’re begging for trouble, aren’t you _son_?”

“I am not your son!” Donghae yelled and turned his head back to the man. “I may share 50% of my genes with you but you are not my father. Never have and never will be!”

“Oh, you’ve gotten your mother’s hot temper.” 

“Don’t you dare to mention her!” Donghae said. He wanted to attack the man. It would’ve been so easy now that the man was so close to him. He would’ve kicked his ass even without his eyesight. But he was still held by the other men.

 

“I thought your left already?” Siwon asked Kibum with raised eyebrows. The younger didn’t seem to even notice him as he ran through the office, straight to Hangeng’s office. He pushed the door open without bothering to knock.

Siwon stood up from his chair. Something had happened. Kibum was supposed to take Donghae home… And then he noticed Jodie coming in his direction. She had something in her mouth…

“Hey beauty, what do you have there?” Siwon asked and grouched down as the dog came closer to him. She stopped, looked up at him and the hand that he was holding out. She then dropped the thing from her mouth. It landed right on Siwon’s palm.

It was a phone.

Donghae’s phone, to be exact.

“Kibum?” Siwon yelled and straightened his back. He had just enough time to turn around when he heard Hangeng’s yell. Their boss definitely didn’t sound happy.

Siwon didn’t think twice as he hopped up the stairs and entered the room. Kibum was leaning over Hangeng’s desk, panting and trying to speak at the same time. Hangeng had stood up from his chair. His fingers were in his hair, his head was pushed back and his eyes shut.

“Tell me everything you know.” Hangeng told Kibum.

“I asked him to wait for me at the front of the building with Jodie. I saw them go to the elevator and go down. I took the other elevator and went down to the garage. Then I drove my car out but had to stop to break a fight. It was right in front of the exit. And when I got to the front I couldn’t find Donghae anywhere. I thought he was still inside but when I called his phone I saw Jodie running to me with his phone in her mouth. That’s everything I know.”

“Why didn’t Hyukjae pick him up like he always does?” Hangeng asked and opened his eyes, now looking directly into Kibum’s. 

“I don’t know. Donghae said something about him working later than usually. But Hyukjae hadn’t called him, so he wasn’t sure.”

“But Hyukjae always calls Donghae whenever he’s taking an extra shift.” Siwon spoke. Only then did the other two notice him. “It’s usually me who takes Donghae home if Hyukjae’s working late.”

“Have you tried to call Hyukjae?” 

Kibum shook his head but Siwon was already looking for Hyukjae’s number on his phone. The moment he found it he hit the call button and waited. But the phone call didn’t connect. “Can’t get through.”

“Call to the restaurant. They’ll know if he’s still working.” Kibum said. And Siwon did. He walked outside the office when a lady at the restaurant answered. Unfortunately the lady was able to tell Siwon that Hyukjae had left around an hour ago, right after his shift had ended.

“He left right after his shift, around six.” 

“Just like he was supposed to.” Hangeng muttered. “Alright. Although we cannot reach Hyukjae’s phone, we need to try and track it. And do it fast. I have a bad feeling about this.”

Kibum turned on his heels and rushed out of the office. Siwon stayed on his roots, eyes locked with Hangeng’s. “His father was released just two days ago.” He spoke, keeping the volume of his voice down. Hangeng said nothing but the small nod he gave Siwon was enough. “So you think this is about him?”

“He saw Donghae when he was being interrogated. He also spoke a lot about him.”

“But why? What does he want from him?”

Hangeng rubbed his temples, looking exhausted. “I don’t know. Donghae didn’t even know about him before last week.” Then he paused. “And we don’t even know if it is him. We have absolutely no clue of what’s going on and why.”

“I’ll go help Kibum. Should I call the others here?”

“Leeteuk’s shift should start in half an hour. Yesung’s having a day off but we’ll call him and the others if they’re needed.”

Siwon nodded, bowed politely before exiting the room. Hangeng sat back down on his chair and pulled out his phone.

 

Donghae woke up and let out a pained groan. The man, his biological father, hadn’t really appreciated his rebellious act. He had been beaten quite badly and his whole body ached. Moving hurt like hell. And thus he didn’t really even try to move.

Fortunately they hadn’t touched Hyukjae…

At least not as long as Donghae had been conscious. Hyukjae had screamed, begged for them to leave Donghae alone, but no one had paid him any attention. 

“Hyuk…” Donghae groaned. His voice was hoarse but audible enough. He waited for an answer but it never came.

Panic arouse in him and he pushed himself up into a sitting position. It hurt more than he had expected and he couldn’t help the scream that escaped his mouth. His ribs…some of them were broken. He was sure of it. 

But why didn’t Hyukjae answer him?

“Hyukjae?” He tried again but still received no answer. He was really starting to freak out. Why didn’t Hyukjae answer him? Was he still there? Was he unconscious? …was he still alive?

Donghae tried his best to get on his fours only to end up crashing on the floor, screaming in pain. It simply hurt too much to move.

“Stop it, you’ll just hurt yourself more.” Donghae froze. He didn’t recognize this voice. The person walked closer to him without a word. He didn’t rush it, just steadily approached. But either way, Donghae tried to get as far from the person as he could.

“Where is he?” He growled. The man stopped moving but Donghae knew he was close enough to be able to touch him. And the pain in his stomach forced Donghae to stay still.

“He’s alright. They just moved you into a different room while you were out.” The man said. He was young, probably much younger than Donghae. His voice was still slightly boyish, somewhat immature. “Let me see your wounds.”

“Why?”

“I’m trying to help you here, Donghae-ssi.” He even spoke formally to him? What was this boy?

“Why would you help me?” Donghae spat and tried to move again. Still without success. He ended up biting his tongue in order to keep himself quiet but the boy could still see his face twist in pain. 

The boy sighed audibly. “Just let me see them.” 

Donghae heard how the boy took one step closer to him before getting on his knees right next to him. He pried Donghae’s hand away from his stomach – Donghae hadn’t even realized he was clutching on his stomach, trying to erase the pain – and then lifted his shirt. Donghae was panting slightly as the boy gently touched his stomach and sides, sliding his hand up along his ribcage. 

“Probably two of your ribs are broken… Try not to move so they won’t hurt your organs.” The boy said silently. It was as if he really cared for Donghae’s wellbeing. 

“You still didn’t answer me.” Donghae said once the boy lowered his shirt back down. 

“I’ll go get something cold on your cheek. It’s swollen pretty badly.” The boy ignored him totally before getting up and exiting the room. The door was closed and locked right behind him. No one entered the room after him and Donghae was left alone. 

It didn’t take long though, for the boy to return. He walked directly to Donghae and knelt down beside him.

“Here, press it on your cheek.” He said and placed a cold packet on his hand. Donghae didn’t hesitate but brought the packet up on his face, gently placing it on his cheek. He winced at the sharp pain the packet caused but soon the cold numbed his skin.

“The answer?” Donghae asked when he got over most of the pain. 

“You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you.” The boy said simply. Donghae turned his head completely to him.

“Try me.”

The boy sighed, probably shook his head, and changed his position. His arm brushed on Donghae’s as the boy also sat on the floor and leaned his back on the wall. “I want this whole thing to end. I’ve had enough.”

Donghae was surprised, but smiled. “You were wrong.” He said and offered the boy his gentle smile. He was beginning to relax. The boy brought him comfort.

“About what?”

“That I wouldn’t believe you.”

“Well, that’s not everything.” 

Donghae raised his eyebrow at the younger but said nothing. He waited for the boy to continue. 

“I–“ the boy hesitated for a moment. “You see, your father is also my father.”

“What?!” Donghae exclaimed. The boy was fast to cover his mouth with his hand, hissing for him to keep it quiet.

“I shouldn’t really be here. I sneaked in. Father wouldn’t be happy to find me here.”

“But… but that makes you my...” Donghae couldn’t finish the sentence. The boy next to him was his half-brother?

“Yeah… I was also shocked when I heard about you.” The boy muttered. 

“What’s your name?” Donghae asked, still trying to recover from the shock.

“I’m Taemin. Just… don’t tell anyone a word about me. They cannot know I visited you. And no one will ever know anything about me. Understood?”

The boy’s voice grew darker all the time he spoke. The immature sound of his voice disappeared as more threatening, tenser tone overpowered the boy’s voice. Donghae didn’t want to answer him verbally. He didn’t really trust his voice. So he settled with a nod.

“So… you probably know their plan?” Donghae said after a small while. “What are they trying to achieve?”

“I’m not completely sure. Father doesn’t always share everything with me. And since it’s about you and I know you’re my brother, he hasn’t told me much. I knew they were going to take you and your husband. But I don’t know what they’re planning to do next.”

“So you don’t know why they took us?”

“Not really. I did overhear them talking about ransoms…”

“Taemin… answer me honestly.” Donghae said and dropped the cold package from his face. “Are they going to kill us?”

“I honestly don’t know. But I’ll do everything to stop it from happening.” Taemin said firmly, determination clear in his voice. 

Donghae let out a strangled laugh. “We both know there isn’t much to be done if they decide to kill us.” The boy didn’t say anything. “But thank you. I really appreciate your sacrifice.”

“I’ll try to visit your husband as soon as possible. I just wanted to see you first.”

“I’d like to say ‘see you again’, but that’s not going to happen.” Donghae smiled sadly. “Do you know how he is?”

“They cut off his finger…” Taemin muttered. A sudden urge to throw up surprised Donghae as the memory of Hyukjae’s hand arouse in his mind. 

“I know…” He managed to get out. His body was starting to shake a little. He wasn’t sure if it was because of the slightly chilly air of the room or the memories and worry over Hyukjae. “Have they done something else to him…? He didn’t really tell me much. And since I can’t see…”

“After they beat you they threatened him with a gun. They said he was worthless and they had no purpose for him.”

“But he’s alright, right? You said he’s okay…!” 

“Donghae-ssi. When I said he’s alright, I really meant it. He’s only missing the finger and was beaten a little while you were still out. But when they pointed the gun at him, he didn’t even cry. I don’t know why they didn’t pull the trigger. I think it was because of his sudden courage.”

“Hyukjae isn’t like that…” Donghae muttered, trying to picture the situation in his mind. He was beaten up to the point he lost consciousness. And a gun was pointed at Hyukjae. And he didn’t make a sound? It just didn’t seem realistic…

“Donghae… he prepared for death. You should’ve seen his face when the gun was lowered.”

“The problem is that I wouldn’t have been able to see even if had been present.”

“How did you lose your eyesight anyway?” Taemin said and touched Donghae’s hand, silently asking him to put the cold package back on his cheek. 

Donghae shook his head. “You won’t believe this… but while trying to rescue Hyukjae.”

“What, why?” Donghae could imagine Taemin’s eyes were wide open, mouth gaping.

“He was kidnapped by a gang… they used him to get me. Much like your father did now.” Yes, he was Taemin’s father, not Donghae’s. “I found him. But then a bullet hit the back of my head.”

“Whoah… You were lucky to survive.” 

“Yeah…” Donghae said with serious face. “And look where it got me. I can’t even defend myself anymore. I’m totally dependent on others. I cannot walk or go out without my stick and dog. I cannot even do the basic household chores, like cooking…” 

“But at least you’re alive.”

“For how long, huh? Till tomorrow? The day after?” Donghae gritted his teeth. “Admit it Taemin, there’s an impossibly small possibility for us to walk out of here.”  
Taemin said nothing. 

“When you go to Hyukjae, tell him to stay strong. He’s been in this kinda situation before. He has to stay strong, no matter what.” Donghae whispered. A single tear escaped his eyes. 

“I will tell him that.” Taemin said. “But before I go, is there someone on the list I should call?”

“What?” 

“I found the phone while you were still out.” Taemin shrugged. “It’s Hyukjae’s, right?”

“Yes… I think he should have Siwon’s number…”

“Is he the Siwon who called the phone earlier today? There was one missed call from him and one from someone called Hangeng.”

“Oh… then call Hangeng.”

“Will do.” The boy said with a smile in his voice. Hearing his slightly easier voice made Donghae smile a little also. He waited for Taemin to get up and take a few steps away from him. 

“Shouldn’t you take this with you?” He then asked and offered the cold package. Taemin made a silent sound before he took the package from Donghae.

“Sorry…” He murmured but Donghae shook his head. 

“Be safe, Taemin-ah.” He told the boy while trying to maintain the smile. He got no answer. Only silence and the sound of the door closing and the lock clicking. 

 

Someone opened the door of the room where he was kept. Hyukjae was too tired to even look up at the person who silently stepped in and closed the door right after him.

“Hyukjae-ssi…” Hearing his voice got Hyukjae’s attention. His head snapped up and he was slightly surprised to see a young boy with wild reddish hair slowly walking towards him. The boy was holding a small pocket knife in his hand, but he was holding on the blade of it, which confused Hyukjae. “Please, don’t make a sound.” The boy said quietly.

Hyukjae didn’t make a sound. But he did watch closely as the boy made his way across the room, immediately grouching in front of him. Hyukjae’s mouth fell open as he watched the boy turn the knife in his hand and in a blink of an eye he cut the ties around his ankles. 

Moaning in pain as the straps fell on the ground, Hyukjae tried to move his feet. But the boy looked up and placed his index finger on his lips. Hyukjae understood the gesture and bit his tongue. When the boy was sure he wouldn’t say anything, he rounded the chair and released his hands. However, before Hyukjae could move his hands the boy took a hold of his left wrist.

“You can’t handle seeing it…” He whispered. Hyukjae knew exactly what the boy was talking about and didn’t really resist. Obediently he kept his hand behind his back when the boy slowly released his hold of it. He did turn his head in order to see what the boy was doing, though. 

From under his loose hoodie, the boy pulled out a bandage and a bottle that looked like disinfectant. And the burn on his hand only confirmed it. 

“Bite your hand. Just shut the fuck up.” The boy growled when Hyukjae let out a whine. In a different situation Hyukjae would’ve scolded the boy for using such language… oh how much he would’ve yelled at him for being that rude...

But he did bite his other hand. The burn was unbearable but he just had to pull it through. 

“There…” The boy murmured and stood up. Hyukjae was still a bit unsure as he pulled his hand from behind his back. He was about to faint. Only four fingers!

“Hyukjae-ssi, I need you to listen to me.” Hyukjae turned his desperate eyes towards the boy who was now sitting on his heels right in front of him. “I have your phone. And I’m going to call Hangeng as soon as I have the chance.”

“Wait–!” Hyukjae hissed. “Where’s Donghae?” 

“He’s alright. Badly beaten up but alive.” The boy said honestly. Hyukjae stared at the boy in disbelief. Was he really concerned about Donghae? He looked somewhat broken… “I don’t have much time to be here. I don’t know when father’s going to come back–“

“Your father?” Hyukjae interrupted. “Who’s your father?” 

The boy’s eyes widened. As if he hadn’t been supposed to say that. Had he accidentally slipped it out. “Shit…” The boy cursed and clenched his hands into fists. “Forget it.” 

The man who was apparently behind all this madness is Donghae’s father… and this kid’s father was here too. Hyukjae tried hard to get those two pieces together.

“Do not say that man’s also your father?” Hyukjae hissed.

“I told you, forget it!” The boy groaned, this time looking directly into Hyukjae eyes.

“So he is your father.” Hyukjae stated and turned his head away from the boy. That boy was apparently Donghae’s brother…at least partially. And Hyukjae had to admit, there was something alike in them…

“You said you’re going to call Hangeng.” Hyukjae muttered and turned back to look at the boy. “What’s your name kid?” 

“Taemin. And yes, I’ll call him. I just don’t know when I’ll be able to do that…” 

“Then why are you wasting your time here with me?”

The boy bit his bottom lip. Much like Donghae does when he’s trying to find the right words. “They let me in here. I was supposed to only put the bandage on your hand. It was much easier to get here than to get to Donghae-ssi.” 

“Was he awake when you went there?” Hyukjae asked and held his breathe while waiting for the answer.

“He was… he actually just woke up when I went there.”

“How badly was he injured?”

“You do ask a lot of questions…” Taemin muttered.

“He’s my husband goddamnit.” Hyukjae growled, almost yelled, and earned a murderous look from the boy in front of him. 

“He has a couple of broken ribs and a lot of bruises. I’m actually glad he’s not able to see himself.”

Hyukjae didn’t know what he was supposed to answer to that. Broken ribs…that was never good. What if they broke some of his organs? Lungs or liver? Heart? He tried his best to get rid of the horror image invading his mind.

“Hyukjae… I must get going. I’m sorry but I have to tie you up again…” 

“Wait… Can I just… Stand up for a short moment?” Hyukjae said as he saw the boy take out new cable ties from the pocket of his hoodie. The boy looked up at him, said nothing and gave him a simple nod. 

Hyukjae didn’t really hesitate to stand up. The ties from earlier had broken the skin on his ankles and it hurt a lot but he didn’t care. His muscles were sore from sitting on the hard chair for who knows how long. His hands were numb and it felt like he was walking on needles. 

He walked around the room for a couple of times before letting out a frustrated sigh and returning to the chair. Taemin had kept an eye on him the whole time, but the look in his eyes was making Hyukjae slightly uncomfortable. His eyes were hard but there was a hint of something else… Was it sorrow or maybe pity? Hyukjae couldn’t tell.

“Could you not put them as tight as they were?” Hyukjae asked weakly when Taemin reached to tie his legs on the chair. 

“Don’t ask me something that is obvious. Of course I’ll leave them loose.” 

 

It was already late. Kibum had been up for over twenty hours by now and hadn’t taken a break since Donghae’s disappearance. He had tried everything he knew in order to be able to track Hyukjae’s phone but with no results. He was getting frustrated. And he wasn’t the only one. The whole team was there, everyone worrying over Donghae and Hyukjae. 

They knew now that Hyukjae was also in trouble since he hadn’t returned home at all. Siwon had one spear key to their apartment, as he was the closest friend of both of them, and he had brought Bada back to the office with him. The dog was horrified and obviously shared the worry of the agents. Neither of her owners had come home, no one had given her food or taken her out before Siwon came.

Kibum sighed and looked at the two guide dogs. They were both lying on the ground right next to each other while keeping their eyes on the humans running around them. Jodie of course knew everyone there, but Bada had so far only met them once. She probably didn’t remember most of them. And yet she managed to stay calm.

“Hyung, you should take a break. I’ll take it from here.” 

“Thanks Henry, but you know I can’t do that.” Kibum said without taking his eyes off the two ladies on the floor. 

“Go take them for a walk. It’ll clear your mind and also ease them out a little.” Henry said and placed his hand on Kibum’s shoulder. The older nodded, but didn’t make a move to get up.

“I just keep on thinking about the fight… was it also planned?” He muttered, not realizing he was speaking out loud.

“You mean the fight you stopped?” Henry asked and pulled a chair from under the desk before sitting down. Kibum nodded. “Hmm… should we then try to look for them? You saw their faces, right?”

“Yeah, I did… but it’ll take an eternity to search for them. I have no idea who they were, just two random men fighting on the street. And they might not even have criminal records.”

“You may be right… I’ll call the drawer here and you can describe them for him. And while we’re waiting for him, you take the dogs out. Alright?”

Kibum huffed. The boys was younger than him and still he could’ve called him hyung. There was something in Henry that he envied. The boy had worked in the Unit much longer than he had and thus had much more experience when compared to him. And there was something comforting in him. He never seemed to lose his cool.

Kibum rolled his eyes and stood up from the chair. The moment he reached for his coat both of the dogs lifted their heads, intensively looking at him. “Okay, okay. Let’s go get some fresh air, now shall we?” He almost didn’t want to put the leashes on the dogs but knowing especially Jodie and how wild she could sometimes be, he decided to use them anyway. He had heard that Bada was a calm and obedient dog, but he didn’t know how she would behave with him around instead of her owners.

 

It was almost 5 am when Taemin finally saw his chance of sneaking out. The house where they were staying was actually built underground and only had one floor above the ground, mostly for deceiving other people. And since the house was heavily guarded, normal cell phones didn’t work there. So he had to get out.

Most of the people in the house were fast asleep by now. He and a few other men on guard were up. Fortunate for him, it wasn’t unusual for him to go out at night. He had always enjoyed the silence as well as the fresh and chilly air of the night time. So it wasn’t hard for him to get past the guard by the front door.

“I’ll be back in half an hour or so.” He told the man. Everyone knew him as the son of their boss, so no one even questioned his nightly requests in the woods. And thus the guard didn’t say a word, only nodded and opened the door for him.

Once Taemin knew he was far enough from the house and made sure no one followed him, he hid himself in the forest. He climbed on top of a rather big rock and took out Hyukjae’s phone. He soon found Hangeng’s name from the list of phone numbers and didn’t hesitate to hit the green button.

The man was fast to answer and thus Taemin didn’t have much time to arrange his words. He spoke before the man had even time to open his mouth. “Hangeng-ssi. Track this call immediately.”

 _“Who’s this?”_ The man asked. Taemin smiled at the worried and astonished voice he heard. He could also hear rushing steps.

“Someone unimportant.” Taemin said shortly. “Listen… I don’t know the address of this place. I’m in the woods near the house where Donghae and Hyukjae are kept. It looks like a small house from the outside but the apartment is actually built under the ground. Hyukjae is kept in a room on the first floor below the ground, in the hallway, the last door on the right. Donghae, on the other hand, is on the bottom floor, the last door on the left.”

_“Alright, got it.”_

“Have you traced the call yet?” 

_“Just a little more.”_ Hangeng answered. Taemin smiled even wider. For the first time in years he felt like the was doing the right thing. And hopefully no one would know about this. _“What’s your share in this mess?” Hangeng asked to make the conversation going._

“I’m not going to hang up before you tell me to, you know.” Taemin said with a wide smile. “I’m just someone who wants this all to come to an end.”

_“Is this about Lee Kyung Soo?”_

“Donghae’s father? Yes, it is.” Taemin’s smile faded a little and he heard Hangeng curse loudly on the other side of the line.

_“How do you know he’s Donghae’s father?”_

“I’ve been there with them. Of course I know.” Taemin said. Hangeng was sharper than he had expected… but well, he was Donghae’s boss, right? He had to be smart in order to be the boss of such agent. And Taemin wasn’t really lying at him. He hadn’t known about Donghae before his father had taken him and Hyukjae.

_“Are they alright?”_

“Damn you ask a lot of questions.” Taemin cursed. “They’re alive but will need medical treatment when they get out.” 

_“Can you be a little more specific?”_

Taemin inhaled deeply before answering. “Hyukjae’s missing a finger and Donghae has two or three broken ribs and maybe a concussion.”

 _“Shit…”_ Hangeng cursed. _“Okay, we have your location. There’s only one house near you so it must be that one, right?”_

“Right. How long will it take for you to come here?”

_“Fifteen minutes, max. Tell me your characteristics so we’ll be able to recognize you.”_

“Red fluffy hair, big red hoodie, black skinny jeans with metal belts… umm, I’m a little less than 1,80m tall… and I probably look like a walking skeleton.” Taemin tried to make it sound like a joke. But honestly, he was skinny and didn’t have muscles that would make him look more like a man. He wasn’t a child anymore, but he certainly looked like one. “You’ll recognize me.”

_“Alright. We’ll be there with the SWAT in a short while. Is it possible for you to stay out of the house? Just in case.”_

“I still have about 25 minutes… and then I should be back.”

_“Good. Stay in the woods. I’ll send someone to find you.”_

 

Donghae had drifted off to sleep at some point. He was exhausted and the pain in his sides didn’t ease at all. On the contrary, it seemed to increase with every breathe he took in. And the dull throbbing in his head only made it worse.

It took him a while to regain full consciousness and take in all the sounds of the surroundings. The silence of the house had disappeared while he had been out. Screams, shouts, gun fires and rushing footsteps were filling the air.

What was going on?

What had gone wrong?

“Donghae, I need you to come with me!” It was Taemin and he sounded pretty shaken. Well, he had all the rights to be shaken. There were guns fired everywhere, it seemed. 

“Why? What’s going on?” Donghae asked and struggled to get on his feet. Taemin was there, trying to support him by holding his arm.

“We need to get you out before father comes.” Taemin spoke fast. It was hard for Donghae to walk without any other guidance than just Taemin who was holding his arm. The boy was walking with quick steps, which made it only harder for Donghae to follow him. And the pain didn’t really make it any easier either.

“What about Hyukjae?” Donghae asked and almost stopped. The pain was really tearing him into half. Every step he took caused a burning pain to explode in his ribs. It was hard for him to breathe and with all the adrenaline in his blood he couldn’t really stay calm.

“He’s ok…” Taemin muttered. He didn’t convince Donghae.

The blind man came to a stop when he heard a door handle being pressed down. “Taemin. I will not leave without him.”

“I said he’s–“ The boy didn’t finish his sentence. Donghae’s breathe hitched in his throat while he waited for the boy to continue. But he said nothing, nor did he move.

“Taemin?” Donghae spoke his name in a hushed voice. The door had been opened but Donghae had the impression it hadn’t been Taemin who opened it. 

“Well… I see you did break my orders after all.” It was the man. His and Taemin’s biological father. Donghae cursed in his mind. Why now, of all times? “How nice it is to see my two sons together.”

“Fuck off.” Taemin hissed. Donghae moved the arm Taemin was still holding onto. The boy didn’t even seem to notice how Donghae pried his hand off him and gently pushed Taemin behind his back. 

“Leave Taemin out of this.” He then spoke, trying to keep his voice calm and steady – everything he definitely was not in the inside – and turned to the direction of his father’s voice. “He’s not the one you want.”

“Donghae, what are you—?” Taemin spat at him but Donghae raised his hand, efficiently silencing the younger. The old man didn’t say a word but Donghae knew he had taken a step towards his two sons.

However, Donghae didn’t buckle. “What is it that you want, really?”

“Didn’t I tell you already?” The man said. He sounded slightly amused, which only made Donghae more restless. “I wanted to spend some quality time with my oldest son.”

“We both know that’s bullshit.” Donghae couldn’t control his tongue anymore. “So what is it really?”

The man made a dramatic sigh before taking a few more steps closer to Donghae. Taemin tried to pull Donghae backwards, but the older didn’t move. It was like he had grown roods on that spot. 

“It’s about your mother, Donghae.” The man said and blew hot, stinky air on Donghae’s face. “She’s made quite a fortune. And by blackmailing her, I’d get a good share.”

“So this is all about money after all.” Donghae hissed. He hadn’t even realized his fingers had curled into fists before Taemin placed one of his hands on his fist. The boy was silently begging for him not to do anything reckless. 

“It’s not only about money. I actually miss your mother. She was the sweetest and the most innocent girl I had ever met.” The man said. Donghae didn’t like the way this conversation was going, but he didn’t say anything. “And I’ve always enjoyed a little challenge. Hmm, should I put it this way: your mother wasn’t going to give her virginity to me, so I had to take it…by force.”

“You son of a–!” Donghae screamed and raised his fist. He was blinded by rage – not going to comment – and wasn’t really thinking rationally. He knew the man was standing right in front of him, it would be easy to sink his fist into his dirty face.

But the barrel of a gun pressed on his stomach stopped him on his place, with his hand still raised and fingers curled.

“Yes, you know what the barrel feels like, don’t you?” The man mused. “And you also know what it is like to have it fired, the bullet piercing you. So if I were you, I wouldn’t do any sudden moves.”

The gun fires and shouts were getting closer to them. Taemin let out a soft whine when the man pushed the barrel a little more into Donghae’s stomach. It was a clear sign, telling Donghae to slowly move backwards.

Hating himself, Donghae raised both of his hands above his head and took a step backwards. Taemin’s presence never left him as he walked further back in the room, feeling the barrel of the gun all the time on his stomach.

“Now, listen to me carefully.” The man said. “Sit down, both of you.”

Slowly Donghae moved his other hand down in order to support himself as he sat on the ground. Taemin also complied and Donghae could feel his shoulder against his. The poor boy was really scared for his life.

“The cops are here. But before they find us, they’ll find all the others. This’ll be the last room they’ll check. And just so you know, none of us three will be walking out of here alive.”

Taemin’s body was shaking more and more at each word the old man was saying. Donghae on the other hand tensed up, practically stopped breathing and tried his hardest to think of a way he and Taemin could be safe. 

But unfortunately, he came up with nothing.

“Why are you doing this?” Donghae asked. “You know, we could all walk out of here if you chose a different option.”

“There are no options here!” The man yelled and the bottom of the gun hit the side of Donghae’s head. The impact was so strong and sudden that it threw him off balance and he crashed right on top of Taemin. The smaller tried to support his body and with his help Donghae was able to sit up again. His head was aching and he could feel a trail of blood flowing down his face.

None of them said anything. They all listened to the sounds coming through the door. They were coming closer all the time. 

Everything seemed to slow down the moment the door was kicked open. Both Donghae and Taemin flinched at the sound and turned to face it. Donghae of course couldn’t see anything but in the middle of everything he recognized Siwon’s familiar voice.

It calmed him down, but only for a brief second. The moment he thought everything would be over soon, he was violently yanked up on his feet. The familiar feeling of a gun barrel pressed against his temple was there and his back was pressed tight against another body. Without question he was now standing right in front of his biological father. 

“One wrong move and he’s gone.” The man yelled. 

“Lower your guns!” Donghae heard Siwon’s voice. His colleague was stressed, Donghae could hear it in his voice. But he couldn’t blame him. He knew he would be near freaking out if he was in Siwon’s shoes. 

And odd calmness filled Donghae’s mind. The whole situation suddenly seemed unrealistic. Just a year ago he had had Kangin’s gun pressed onto his scalp and now he was in the same situation again. But this time, he was sure he wasn’t going to get away from the situation. 

He didn’t need to fight anymore. 

He was sure the agents had already found Hyukjae. He was already safe. Donghae didn’t need to save him anymore. 

A smile spread on his face. He looked up in the direction he knew Siwon would be standing. His other hand was held tightly by the old man behind him, but with his free hand he slowly removed his sunglasses. 

With not a single tear in his eyes, he opened them and let Siwon see them for the last time. He knew what he was doing and he wanted to assure Siwon not to interfere. 

He had it all planned out in his mind now. One swift move and he’d be facing his father. He would panic and make a rushed move, which would cause the SWAT to fire. And they would both be gone. 

The only moving part was Taemin. Donghae didn’t know where the boy was, but he hoped he was still sitting on the floor. At least he hadn’t heard him moving.

He was just about to make his plan come trued when the man behind his back suddenly let out a loud cry. Donghae’s body was being pushed to the side and he crashed on the floor before he could catch himself.

Shots echoed in the room. And then he heard Siwon’s frantic yell, telling everyone to stop the fire.

Silence filled the room although some screams and shots were still coming through the open doorway. 

Only after a while did Donghae dare to move. He heard rushing steps coming in his way and soon felt a hand on his shoulder.

“Donghae, it’s over. Are you alright?” 

The pain in his ribs exploded as the adrenaline disappeared from his body. He cried in agony and tried to roll over so he’d be lying on his back. But the pain was too intense.

“We need medical help here!” The person never took his hand away from Donghae’s body. There were footsteps running around everywhere but the pain and the bloodflow made all the sounds blend together. It was hard for Donghae to try and concentrate on what was going on.

“Taemin…” He suddenly gasped. Where was Taemin? Was he alright? Was he hurt?

“Donghae, just… stay still. The medics will be here in a moment.” It took Donghae a while to understand the person next to him was Siwon. 

“Taemin, where is he?” Donghae asked again, trying his best to ignore the pain in his body. 

“Donghae. Stay still. It’s an order.” Never had Donghae felt as surprised to find Hangeng on the field as he was now. Hangeng never went out of the office… 

“Donghae, the medics are here in a minute.” Siwon spoke. “Where does it hurt? Can you turn over, on your back?”

“Can’t you see it hurts too fucking much to move?” Donghae growled and moved his hand to push Siwon’s away from him. Siwon didn’t say anything, just let Donghae remove his hand from his shoulder and watched his face twist in pain.

He heard someone yell for the medics to hurry up. He said there were two injured. Donghae knew he was one of those two. Was Taemin also injured? Or was he safe with no injuries at all, and thus their father would be the other one injured… Or was he…?

Donghae hated the uncertainty. Why wouldn’t Siwon just tell him? 

The medics finally arrived. They asked him questions after questions but Donghae didn’t really pay much attention on them. He answered most of their questions with only one or two words. And finally they moved him, turned him on his back and lifted on bars and carried him out of the house.

They carried him into the ambulance and rushed him to the hospital. He never said a word during the drive. When they arrived to the hospital, the doctors were running around him, telling him something about a surgery and then everything went blank.

 

Donghae woke up in the hospital bed after the surgery. The oh-so-familiar sound of the beeping machine filled the room. Otherwise it was completely silent. He knew immediately why he was in the hospital. He remembered everything. 

All that pain. All the fear. Hyukjae tied on a chair. His finger was cut off. Taemin. He tried to rescue him. And then their father had been there. And bullets flying in the air. And then his colleagues. And the ambulance. All those things were clear in his memory.

But he was still too tired to think about the others… What happened to Hyukjae and Taemin? Were they alright?

The door of the room opened, letting in the fuzz of the hospital. It only lasted for a brief moment as the door was closed again. 

“I see you’re awake. How are you feeling Mr. Lee?” A pleasant female voice spoke. She was probably a nurse checking on him. 

“Been better…” Donghae groaned. His voice was hoarse and throat sore. Had they forced a pipe down his throat during the surgery?!

“The surgery went fine.” The nurse said while flipping through some papers. “They fixed two of your lowest ribs. You were lucky nothing else was broken. The ribs hadn’t broken any of your organs. You also had a mild concussion, but apparently it didn’t cause anything severe.”

Donghae answered nothing although he would’ve loved to point out how he was blind and lying on a hospital bed. How lucky was that?!

“The doctor will be here shortly.” The nurse spoke again. “Your family and friends are waiting outside. Would you like to meet them while waiting for the doctor?”

“Is… Is Hyukjae there?”

“Your husband?” The nurse asked as if to make sure she knew who he was talking about. Donghae didn’t trust his voice anymore. So he nodded. “He’s still recovering from his surgery. You’ll be able to meet him tomorrow.”

“How is he?”

“He’s in shock but will be fine. They were able to put his finger back on its place but they cannot guarantee it’ll be as it was before. The time shows how well he’ll recover.”

Donghae was utterly confused. They had fixed his finger? But how? 

“Mr. Lee, is there anything you need? Do I need to increase the dosage of the painkillers?”

“N-no, I’m alright. Is… Is Leeteuk or Siwon there? I’d like to… talk with them.” Donghae muttered. He needed to know what the hell had happened. Apparently he had missed something rather important. And he didn’t dare to ask about Taemin’s condition. He didn’t want to hear it from the nurse.

“Of course, I’ll ask them in.” She said and was about to leave the room. “If there’s anything, press the button on your left wrist and I’ll be here in a second.”

The door didn’t have time to close before two pairs of shoes hit the floor. His two colleagues, best friends rushed into the room, only stopping when they were on either sides of the bed. 

“Hyung…” Siwon whispered and took Donghae’s hand into his. He gave him a soft kiss on the back of his hand before putting it back down, never letting it go.  
Donghae knew there were many questions Siwon would’ve wanted to ask him, but he didn’t let him. He gave his friend a weak smile before speaking.

“How are they? Hyukjae and Taemin?”

“Hyukjae will be alright. He’s still out, and the doctors wanted to keep him in a slight coma for a while due to the fatigue.” Leeteuk explained. His voice was quiet and cautious, as if he was really concentrating on the words he was about to say. “His finger… they managed to get it back on place but they cannot say whether it’ll work as it used to do.”

Donghae nodded. He was feeling slightly better now. Hyukjae was safe. “And Taemin?”

“Is Taemin the boy we found from the room with you?” Siwon asked. Donghae nodded. He didn’t like the tone of Siwon’s voice. And his fear only grew as Siwon squished his hand a little more. “He was shot in the cross fire. He’s in coma for now.”

Donghae’s heart skipped a beat. Taemin was in coma?! But how?

“Donghae, you should rest… Let’s talk about what happened later, okay?” Leeteuk said softly and touched Donghae’s cheek. 

“No… Hyung, I need to know everything. I can’t just lie here without knowing!” 

“Donghae-ah…” Siwon tried to calm him down but it was of no use. It only pissed Donghae off.

“No!” He yelled and ripped his hand away from Siwon’s. “I must know! What happened? How did you find us? What happened to Taemin? How did you find Hyukjae? Did–“ He stopped the flow of questions abruptly. 

Siwon sighed. “Apparently it was Taemin who called us. He had Hyukjae’s phone and he called Hangeng, who tracked your location.” He paused. “The house you were kept in was built under the ground… Taemin was able to tell us where they kept you beforehand so we kind of knew what to do. You were kept in the bottom room whereas Hyukjae was on the floor above you.”

“We had already taken Hyukjae out of the house by the time we found you. He’s still recovering from his surgery.” Leeteuk said. 

“I know… the nurse told me.” Donghae murmured. “So Taemin did call you after all. I wasn’t sure if he could do it.” 

“Donghae… Taemin’s in coma so we haven’t been able to talk to him.” Leeteuk spoke softly. “What’s your relationship with him, exactly?”

“Taemin’s just someone who wanted to help.” Donghae spoke quickly. Way too quickly. He knew neither of them believed him. 

“Donghae… is there something we should be aware of?”

“No… It’s nothing, hyung.” Donghae muttered and brought his hand up to rub his eyes. He was really getting tired. And suddenly he felt like he would’ve preferred to be left alone. “Hyung… I’m tired.” 

Donghae knew the other two shared a concerned look before Siwon softly patter his hand. “Sure. Get some rest. I think the doctor will be here shortly.”

“I’ll come check on you tomorrow, alright?” Leeteuk said and gently patter Donghae’s head. The younger didn’t say anything, just nodded at both of them while trying to force a smile on his lips. He knew he failed miserably but neither of them said anything.

The moment the door closed, Donghae finally let the tears flow down. He was relieved yet worried, all at the same time. His Hyukjae was safe and would recover…at least physically. But Taemin was in coma. Would he ever wake up?

 

The next day came sooner than Donghae expected. The doctors wanted to keep him at the hospital a few more days just to make sure his concussion did not cause anything severe. They were also watching over his ribs, making sure his bones were healing properly.

And he also got to meet Hyukjae. Actually, Hyukjae was the one coming to meet him. His finger was on place but he said he couldn’t really feel it. There was a bandage wrapped around his finger and hand. He said he had a few stiches on his face also, because of the hits he had received. 

“I’ll be ready to go home tomorrow, but they said they’ll keep you here for a little longer.” Hyukjae said. They were both lying on Donghae’s bed, side by side. Donghae was slowly playing with Hyukjae’s hair while the other had wrapped the fingers of his right hand around Donghae’s. 

“That’s what I heard…” Donghae muttered. Deep silence fell in the room as neither of them spoke. It wasn’t uncomfortable to be in silence. Neither of them was bothered by it.

It took Donghae a while before he managed to break the silence. “Hyukjae… I’m quitting.”

Hyukjae moved, probably to take a proper look at him. “You what?”

“I quit. I won’t go back to work.” Donghae whispered. He had thought about it over the night. And he wanted to believe he was certain about his decision. Which, in reality, he wasn’t sure about.

“But Donghae… Why?”

“Why?!” Donghae exclaimed and turned to face Hyukjae while ripping his glasses from his face. “After all this shit, you ask me _why_?”

“Hey… none of this is your fault. We’re both going to be just fine.”

“No Hyuk… We are not fine. Last year I lost my eyesight. You were traumatized and went to see the therapist for 5 months. And now that we’ve learned to cope with everything, this happened again. I cannot put you into that danger for the third time.”

“Donghae–“

“Do not try to stop me. You’ve never even liked my job. You knew it would be hard to be with me since you’d never know if I’d come back home or not. And even though you deny it, you were delighted to hear I’d be stuck in the office after the accident. So why are you trying to disagree with me quitting my job for good?”

Hyukjae took in a deep breath and lifted his finger to touch Donghae’s cheek. “I just know how much you liked your job. And you’re right, I was kind of relieved to hear you’d be doing the interrogations with Kibum. But that doesn’t mean I was happy for it to happen. You were devastated. And I wasn’t the only one seeing the therapist, by the way.”

Donghae said nothing. He bit the inside of his cheek and tried to keep the tears in his eyes from escaping. 

“Your sessions aren’t even over yet. I know you, Donghae. I know you’re trying to stay strong and be the man of our relationship, but that’s not needed. I know your weaknesses and I know your strengths. There’s no point of hiding them from me.” 

Hyukjae was right. He knew him thoroughly. 

“Umm… There’s something I’d like to ask you though…” Hyukjae muttered, the confidence of his voice dropping drastically. 

“What is it?” 

“Could you tell me about Taemin?” 

Donghae froze. They hadn’t discussed about the boy yet. He had known Hyukjae would ask about him someday, but never did he expect that day to come so soon. “What about him?”

“I know he’s your brother, Donghae.”

Donghae tried to swallow the lump in his throat. “You do?” Hyukjae nodded and hummed in agreement. Donghae could only mouth a silent ‘oh’.

“He told me when he came to get my phone. You know, he also took care of my finger. He found it from the floor and put it in ice. I have to thank him when he wakes up. Without him I would be missing a finger.”

Donghae closed his eyes and reached for his glasses in order to hide his teary eyes behind them. All the emotions he had tried to suppress emerged again. Taemin had been so good to both of them. They were well and safe. Unlike their savior who was lying in coma. Nobody knew if he would wake up or not. 

But Hyukjae had used the word ‘when’. It wasn’t ‘if’.

They still had hope. And Donghae would cling to it.

“Without him I wouldn’t be holding you.” Donghae whispered and pulled Hyukjae’s body closer to him, not caring about the pain it cause him. All that mattered to him was Hyukjae. Plus, he had promised Taemin not to tell about him to anyone. Although Hyukjae already knew, he wasn’t convinced Taemin would want Hyukjae to know anything more about him. So he decided to change the topic.

“Hyukjae… I know this is hard for you right now, but could you tell me what exactly happened?”

“Umm… I don’t really remember much. I think I was too shocked by everything to get a clear picture.”

Donghae smiled and kissed Hyukjae’s hair. “Tell me what you remember. I wasn’t able to see anything so my memories are kinda partial.”

“Well… I remember them putting a cloth over my mouth when I was leaving work. I was by the car when they came. And then I woke up in the room. I was tied on the chair. You weren’t there yet. But there were many other men there… I think one of them said something about being your father…” Hyukjae trailed off while trying to remember the events.

“He said they were waiting for your arrival and in the mean time they were to teach me some manners. And that’s when they…” Hyukjae kept a pause to take a deep breathe. “That’s when they cut off my finger. They made fun of me being gay and they threw my ring away. Taemin couldn’t find it by the way, so we’re going to have to buy me a new one.” Hyukjae chuckled weakly.

“What happened then?” Donghae asked and tightened his arms around Hyukjae’s body, assuring him everything was alright now. 

“I think they left me and the next time they came back they threw you on the floor. I thought you were dead or something since you were completely still. I didn’t even see you breathing.” Hyukjae let out a weak sob. “But then they left and I just hoped you’d wake up. Which you did, after what felt like ages. And then you crawled towards me. I would’ve wanted to hug you, to tell you how much I love you… but I couldn’t.”

“I love you too, honey…” Donghae whispered and tried to calm his husband down who was sobbing more now. Tears were soaking Donghae’s shirt but he couldn’t care less.

“Then your father came… and other men. And they beat you, right in front of my eyes. And they forced me to watch it. They held me still and forced me to watch as they kicked you and you lost consciousness.” Hyukjae sobbed harder. “And then they took you away. I…”

“What Hyukkie?” Donghae said and ran his fingers through Hyukjae’s soft hair. “What happened after they took me away from you?”

“They just left me there. Nobody came there… Not before Taemin. He said he had been to you and told me you were still alive… And he took care of my finger. I think he also said something about my phone… I can’t really remember.”

“He found your phone from my pocket. Apparently he had been there before I woke up as he had already taken it. He asked me if there was someone he could call and I told him to call either Hangeng or Siwon.”

“Yes, he said something like that.” Hyukjae muttered. He was obviously much calmer now although he still had a tight hold on the fabric of Donghae’s shirt. “And then I was left alone again. I think I fell asleep at some point as there’s a big gap in my memory. I woke up when the agents and the SWAT came in.”

“So they didn’t harm you more than what they had done already when I was brought there, am I right?”

“Well, basically yes. The cable ties they used were too tight and they cut on my skin but Taemin loosened them when he came. But other than that I was left alone.”  
Donghae expected the conversation to be over and he gave Hyukjae’s hair one last kiss before releasing him from his hug. But Hyukjae wasn’t on the same line with him.

“Donghae… what did he, your biological father, want from you?”

Donghae was a bit surprised by the question, but shrugged it off. “I’m not sure. And I guess we’ll never know.”

“But Taemin knows, right?” Hyukjae sounded almost hopeful, which caused Donghae to frown at him.

“He said he didn’t know. His father didn’t tell him about his plan.” He sighed. “Apparently he didn’t want Taemin to know I was his brother.”

Hyukjae was quiet for a moment. “Why didn’t your mother ever tell you about him?”

Donghae opened his mouth but closed it again. He was about to say he didn’t know the answer but then the echo of the man’s words rang in his head. _Your mother wasn’t going to give her virginity to me, so I had to take it…by force._

“He… I think he…” He couldn’t put it into words. His mother had been raped by that monster. And he was the result of it. He was a constant reminder for her mother about that…event. He felt like throwing up. Just the thought of it made him feel all dizzy and sick.

“Donghae, are you alright?”

“N-no…” Donghae stuttered and lowered his head. “Let’s not talk about it now…”

“Okay. Don’t push it too hard on yourself.” Hyukjae said softly and leaned in to kiss Donghae’s lips. It helped Donghae to relax a bit and he sighed into the kiss.

He knew it was only a beginning of a long road to recovery for both of them. But they would get over it. He knew it. They were both strong and they had each other’s support. 

Donghae promised he would visit Taemin as long as necessary. They would both visit him. And they would continue their lives, although nothing would be the same as they used to be.

**Author's Note:**

> I just couldn't write a sad ending for this...  
> Well, what can I say - I love happy endings!! And I find this kinda happy...right? 
> 
> Comments and kudos are loved!! Thank you~~
> 
> <3  
> Sung Gi


End file.
